Minister of State (Minister for Veterans’ Affairs) The Rt Hon Johnny Mercer MP Visits Forward Assist HQ

We were delighted to host a visit from Johnny Mercer MP at the Forward Assist Veterans Health & Wellbeing Hub. During the visit, Minister Mercer met with Team Salute Her UK and had an in depth discussion on our mutual research papers into the long-term impact of sexual assault on both women and men during military service. We thanked the Minister for funding our next research project looking into the correlation between Military Sexual Trauma and suicidal ideation which starts later this month.

Stephanie Peacock MP Visits Forward Assist & Salute Her UK

Stephanie Peacock is the Labour MP for Barnsley East and has been an MP continuously since 8 June 2017. She currently undertakes the role of Shadow Minister (Defence). Forward Assist & Salute Her UK were delighted to host a visit from Stephanie and facilitate a virtual meeting with a group of women veterans with lived experience of in-service bullying , harassment, discrimination and sexual assault. A keen advocate for all veterans, she has asked numerous questions of Parliament in relation to the Government and MoD’s reluctance to recognise the term Military Sexual Trauma. (MST)

Virtual International Colloquium on Military Sexual and Other Forms of Abuse

Forward Assist & Salute Her UK were delighted to be invited to be part of an International Five Eyes virtual colloquium on military sexual and other forms of abuse The video recording of this webcast can be accessed at https://youtu.be/wPuzBhnD77E

Independent Review Commission Recommendations on Countering Sexual Assault in the US Military

Forward Assist were delighted to give evidence to the US Independent Review Commission (IRC) on Sexual Assault in the Military. As the leading charity in the UK delivering and developing trauma informed interventions for serving personel and veterans with lived experience of Military Sexual Trauma we were delighted to update the panel on the lack of services for UK victims and survivors.

The IRC made 82 recommendations in four priority areas: accountability; prevention; climate and culture; and victim care and support. Key themes of the report recognized both strengths and areas for improvement; recognizing dedicated leaders and a desire to engage; and emphasizing the need to promote climates of dignity and respect, investing in knowledgeable sexual assault responders and the strong need for proper resources and training.

The commission was led by Lynn Rosenthal and twelve highly qualified experts in the areas reviewed. The team met with more than 600 people including military leadership, service members and sexual assault survivors.

You can read the full report here: IRC-FULL-REPORT-FINAL-1923-7-1-21.PDF (defense.gov)